Found: A Favorable Contemporary Review of Ram
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A few days ago I was looking through some things that came from the home I was born and raised in that, sadly, we sold and closed out about ten years ago when our Mother passed on. I thought I had pulled out all my old Beatles/Macca things and was really surprised to find some early 1970s newspaper clippings on them, articles on the breakup, will they get back together, that sort of thing. Was especially struck by the following from an album review published in the Charlotte Observer on June 27, 1971, written by a guy named Mike Jahn who looks remarkably like my older brother but, of course, isn't. "This strikes me as the best album yet released by a solo Beatle, one that ranks with the best LP's by the now-disbanded rock band. In overall tone, it's comparable to Side Two of Abbey Road with both containing little pieces of varying color and intensity. There is good hard rock (Too Many People and Smile Away), nice folksy things (Heart of the Country) and general good feeling." It goes on to talk about Paul and Linda's songwriting, describing her backup vocals as "unobtrusive but effective." He closes out the review by quoting Lennon in Rolling Stone where he said "We got tired of being sidemen for Paul" and plays off that statement by saying that, in light of Ram, "but now it seems like quite a compliment." Pretty remarkable, considering all the negative stuff that was tossed out about that album back then, some of which was brought back to life last year as I seem to recall the Rolling Stone review quoted on here when the Ram deluxe came out. This makes refreshing reading. Funniest things found--a photo of Paul, Linda, and family after disembarking from the SS France that had sailed across the Atlantic to New York in 1970. The photo caption is "Meet Mr. Martin" and it says he traveled under the alias Paul Martin while in transit.
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That is funny, the Charlotte Observer is my local newspaper. (did not move there until 1990).
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Nice find, thanks for sharing!! I always thought the slagging the LP took back then was because people were still made at Paul for the (perceived) image of him as having caused the Beatles breakup. I've never had anything other than a love bordering on obsession for that album. So it's nice to see there were still SOME objective critics back in 1971!
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DrBeatle:
Nice find, thanks for sharing!! I always thought the slagging the LP took back then was because people were still made at Paul for the (perceived) image of him as having caused the Beatles breakup. I've never had anything other than a love bordering on obsession for that album. So it's nice to see there were still SOME objective critics back in 1971!
You're welcome, glad I came across it when I was actually looking for something else I never did find. You are right about the hate Paul thing being based on using him as a scapegoat. I think someone quoted the author of that infamous Rolling Stone review as later admitting that his being harsh really didn't have anything to do with Ram, he was out to slam him over breaking up the Beatles. Hopefully, that guy never ends up on jury duty somewhere. As for Ram, when I play it sounds as fresh and new as it did in 1971. Not many albums you can say that about.
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John Mackintosh:
DrBeatle:
Nice find, thanks for sharing!! I always thought the slagging the LP took back then was because people were still made at Paul for the (perceived) image of him as having caused the Beatles breakup. I've never had anything other than a love bordering on obsession for that album. So it's nice to see there were still SOME objective critics back in 1971!
You're welcome, glad I came across it when I was actually looking for something else I never did find. You are right about the hate Paul thing being based on using him as a scapegoat. I think someone quoted the author of that infamous Rolling Stone review as later admitting that his being harsh really didn't have anything to do with Ram, he was out to slam him over breaking up the Beatles. Hopefully, that guy never ends up on jury duty somewhere. As for Ram, when I play it sounds as fresh and new as it did in 1971. Not many albums you can say that about.
Completely agree...it's just a fantastic piece of work. I rank it on the same level as any of the best Beatles albums, no joke (and I'm first and foremost a Beatles fanatic).
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that is a good review. love that LP. rolling stone ranked fairly high, 4 stars i think, back in the day. now if MPL will encrypt all the other remasters they do...
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The 2012 remaster really highlights the fantastic musicianship of this wonderful record, and his vocals are among the finest he ever recorded. In my top 5 McCartney albums. Really an underrated classic!
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admit I discovered only due to the remasters knew most of the songs here and there just when you play it in continuity a couple of times you get it. you appreciate it.
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DrBeatle:
Nice find, thanks for sharing!! I always thought the slagging the LP took back then was because people were still made at Paul for the (perceived) image of him as having caused the Beatles breakup. I've never had anything other than a love bordering on obsession for that album. So it's nice to see there were still SOME objective critics back in 1971!
Back then, critics had it in for Paul for numerous reasons....the breakup of the Beatles and how he went about announcing it....to promote his new album, which wasn't much more than home recordings, Paul being considered a light weight, Paulie and the kiddies in tons of photos. Now, of course, photos of rock stars with their kids are considered great and touching, but not then. It wasn't cool. Jon Landau, may he live in infamy, totally trashed the album in his Rolling Stone review. And took great delight in doing so. I have to admit, I let it affect how I perceived the album. Much to my delight and surprise, when it was remastered and re-released a few years ago, I totally loved it. And the bonus tracks. Love all of it.
